Chapter 25
I was dreaming. I felt safe . . . I was safe, dancing around in my field of flowers. Suddenly someone’s arms snaked around my waist.
“You did it, baby,” the voice whispered in my ear. “It’s going to be all right now. I promise.”
I turned toward the sound of the voice I loved more than anything else in the world.
“What did I do?” I asked Vance innocently, staring into his bright-blue eyes.
“You saved me. It worked!” he replied with a wide smile.
“What worked?” I was confused, unable to figure out what he was talking about.
“The binding spell, the healer’s magic. All of it.” He laughed and hugged me tightly.
“Healer’s magic?”
“You’ve proven to be a very powerful healer witch.”
“Then why am I still sleeping?” I asked suspiciously, narrowing my eyes.
“You still need to rest for a while. Your body was very depleted.” He leaned down to nuzzle his face into the crook of my neck. “I’m sorry about that.”
I wasn’t sure what he was talking about, so I just relished the feel of him for a few moments, too happy to try and straighten things out in my head. But I became very tired all of a sudden and wanted to go to sleep, so I closed my eyes.
Wait a minute, wasn’t I already asleep?
The physical pain of separation began to seep into my system. I opened my eyes to look at him, but he wasn’t there.
“Vance?” I exclaimed. “Vance! Where are you?” My heart was pounding in my chest, and I twirled in a circle, searching.
When his voice finally came, it was in a distant whisper.
“I’m leaving you for a while, baby,” he said apologetically.
“What? No! Don’t go!” I ran in the direction I thought his voice had come from. “Don’t leave me!”
“I have to—just for a little while. I’ll see you again someday, though. I promise! I love you!”
I knew he was gone then because I couldn’t feel him anymore. Sinking to the ground beneath me, I curled into a ball and allowed the tears to overcome me until I fell asleep.
Later, I awoke to find myself still lying in a heap in the field of flowers. I sat up and looked around, the breeze in the meadow blowing gently over the top of me. Voices tinkled softly in the air moving around me, but I could only catch snippets of what they were saying as I tried to recognize them.
“Is she okay?”
“ . . . don’t know if . . . ”
“ . . . hasn’t woken up since . . . ”
“No, he’s gone . . . ”
I tried speaking to get their attention. “Hello? Is someone there?”
“ . . . just moved . . . ” came the reply.
“Maybe she is . . . ” another voice answered.
I concentrated real hard on the sound of those voices.
“Grandma?” I called out, thinking I recognized one of the voices as I heard more mumblings. “Shelly!” I shouted when I recognized her voice out of the blue, but there was no reply from either of them.
When I realized the curious conversation had stopped, I got up and wandered around the edges of my meadow, examining the beautiful flowers that dotted the landscape, but I soon tired and lay down once again to rest.
The next time I opened my eyes, I found myself situated in Grandma’s guest bedroom, lying on the comfy bed with blankets tucked nicely around my body.
I blinked several times at the bright light that filled the room.
“Oh! You’re awake!” an exuberant voice at my side exclaimed, and I turned my head to see Shelly jump up from the chair. She tossed a book onto the nightstand and came to sit beside me on the bed. I was happy to see her appearance back to the old Shelly I had known and loved my whole life.
“Hey,” I said, my voice cracking from lack of use.
“How’re you feeling?” she asked, with a concerned look.
I did a quick mental check before replying. “Fine, I think. Where is everyone?”
“They’re not here. I volunteered to sit with you while they went to the funeral,” she replied.
“The funeral?” I asked, and horror streaked through me. “Where’s Vance?”
“I’m sorry, Portia,” Shelly replied with a sad expression. “I forget you don’t know everything that’s going on. You’ve been out of it for a while.”
“Shelly!” I groaned, struggling to sit up. “Where’s Vance?”
“He’s gone,” she replied, and I sucked in a sharp breath, a sob caught in my throat.
“He died?” I asked, everything in my whole world crumbling to nothingness.
“What? Died? No!” Shelly responded in a rush. “I’m sorry. I’m really botching this up, aren’t I? It’s Marsha. They’re all at Marsha’s funeral.”
It took a moment for her words to sink in.
“He’s not dead?” I gasped and fell back onto the pillows in exhaustion, my hand clutched over my pounding heart.
“No. But he is gone. He left.”
“He left?” I asked, still confused. “Left where? To the funeral?”
Shelly got up and went to where a white envelope was lying on the nightstand. She brought it to me.
“He said to give this to you when you woke up,” she explained.
My hands trembled slightly when I took it from her and carefully opened the envelope, reaching in to pull out a folded paper from inside. When I opened it, several pictures fell out, tumbling before my eyes onto my lap. They were our photographs from the day we’d been in the forest.
I held up the images one by one, looking at our smiling faces. Some were funny, others were serious, and we were kissing in several of them. I paused on the last one I’d taken of him that day, propped up on his arm as he looked at me with all the love in the world.
Gently, I placed the pictures on my stomach, picked up his letter, and began to read:
“Portia,
I’m breaking my word by even writing this letter. Please don’t hold it against me.
First of all, I ask your forgiveness for all the heartache I've caused. I can’t even imagine what I must’ve put you through. Thanks for believing in me and not giving up. It means more to me than you’ll ever know.
I assume it's been explained by now that you're a healer witch. Without the gift of your blood, and power, I’d most certainly have lost my life in this battle. Your mom said you wanted a miracle, and you got it. A healer witch has never before been able to heal someone in demon transition. As usual, you've proven your powers far exceed what anyone ever thought they would.
It was the words of our binding spell that finally brought sanity back to me. Thank you for helping me remember.
Second, as I’m sure you've noticed, I'm no longer there. I cannot, and will not, let you live a life where something like this could happen again. I'm going to go find my father and finish this once and for all. If I’m successful, I’ll return as fast as I can. If I’m not, then please know I love you more than anything in this world, and I will be waiting for you to join me in the next.
Please live your life and be happy. I hope to see you again soon!
My Heart Will Always Be Yours,
Vance
To say that my blood began to boil would have been an understatement. I was furious!
“What the heck is he thinking?” I yelled at Shelly, and she took an involuntary step backwards. “He’s going to get himself killed!”
I tried to get out of bed.
“What’re you doing? You’re too weak to get out of bed yet!” She hurried over and tried to push me back down onto the pillows.
“Move out of my way!” I said, grabbing her hand.
“I’m supposed to be taking care of you, though,” she pleaded.
“I can’t live without him, Shelly. He has no support, no help, nothing! He’s running to his death!”
“What do you need me to do?” she asked, sighing in resignati
on.
“Bring your car around,” I said firmly. “I’m going after him.”
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Read the series from Vance’s perspective, get his insights and see new material!
Book of Shadows: Fire & Ice, available September 8, 2013!
About The Author:
Lacey Weatherford has always had a love of books. She wanted to become a writer after reading her first Nancy Drew novel at the age of eight.
Lacey resides in the White Mountains of Arizona, where she lives with her wonderful husband, children, and pets. When she's not out supporting one of her kids at their sporting/music events, she spends her time writing, reading, blogging, and reviewing books.
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Of Witches and Warlocks: The Trouble with Spells Page 26